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Democratic President-elect Joe Biden and incumbent Republican President Donald Trump, like millions of Americans, were celebrating Thanksgiving in silence at home as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the United States.
Key points:
- Joe Biden says Americans are making a “shared sacrifice” by staying home
- Meanwhile, Trump encourages all Americans to gather in homes and places of worship.
- COVID-19 deaths in the US reached 2,000 in a single day earlier this week
Biden was vacationing in the small seaside town of Rehoboth, Delaware, where he and his wife Jill have a vacation home.
The Bidens welcomed their daughter Ashley Biden and her husband, Dr. Howard Kerin, for the holiday meal.
The former vice president, who appeared with his wife Jill in a video message posted to his Twitter account on Thanksgiving, said his family usually holds a large gathering on the island of Nantucket off Massachusetts, but would remain in Delaware. this year “with only a small group. around our table” because of the pandemic.
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In the presidential-style address to a nation that has lost more than 260,000 lives to the coronavirus, Biden said Americans were making a “sacrifice shared by the entire country” and a “statement of common purpose” by staying home with families. .
“I know this is not the way many of us expected our vacations to be spent. We know that a little act of staying home is a gift to our compatriots,” Biden said.
Meanwhile, Trump often likes to celebrate the holidays at his Mar-a-Largo resort in Florida, but on Thursday he stayed in the Washington area.
It was very different from last year when he made a surprise visit to Afghanistan, where he served turkey to American troops before sitting down to dinner with them on Thanksgiving.
Unlike Biden, who pleaded with Americans to celebrate the holiday safely with the use of masks and social distancing, Trump, in his Thanksgiving proclamation on Wednesday, urged Americans to “come together” to the holiday.
Trump has frequently ignored public health warnings and hosted large groups at the White House, with many of his guests refusing to wear masks.
The pandemic continues to its harsh USA.
In addition to Trump, several other prominent Americans, including First Lady Melania Trump and members of Congress, tested positive for COVID-19 following such events.
While fewer than normal Americans are expected to travel this year for Thanksgiving, millions still defied pleas from state and local officials and health experts to go to family gatherings instead of staying home. despite the increasing rate of infection.
Deaths in the United States from COVID-19 topped 2,000 in a single day on Tuesday for the first time since May, and hospitalizations hit a record high of more than 89,000 on Wednesday.
Biden, who defeated Trump in the November 3 election, has moved forward with the transition to his new administration and has vowed to prioritize controlling the virus.
Earlier this week, he announced key members of his foreign policy and national security team and promised to announce more appointments, including his economic team, in the coming days.
Although he has yet to admit defeat, Trump agreed that Biden’s transition should proceed officially, clearing the way, for example, for the Democrat to receive high-level intelligence reports.
But the president continues to make unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud, while his legal advisers continue to make efforts to overturn the results, with little success.
Reuters
